Oil derricks, Petrolia, Ontario, 1886; photo taken by Robert Bell

The Fairbank family has been part of Canada’s oil industry since John Henry Fairbank first struck oil in 1858. Charles Fairbank Oil Properties Ltd. is listed as the oldest oil company in the world, according to Library and Archives Canada. By 1880 it become the largest oil producer in Canada.

Stills, used to process petroleum, at the Producers Oil Refinery, Petrolia, Ontario, 1886

As part of one of the first oil companies in North America, Van Tuyl and Fairbank Inc. launched Solarware on May 1st. The hardware store in southwestern Ontario will sell solar collector panels, solar-powered hot-water heaters and in-floor heating systems.

Some of the oldest oil companies have dabbled with renewable energy. But several activist have claimed it has been for the purpose of greenwashing and trying to give a dirty oil company a clean image. Greenwashing or not, it is still important to look at how some are making an effort.

Shell (founded in 1907) had a solar business from 2000 to 2006 when they finally sold to Germany’s SolarWorld. A move that made SolarWorld into one of the largest producers of PV in the U.S.

Solar project between a FedEx distribution hub and BP Solar making this the largest rooftop installation in the United States. 2.4 megawatt covers 3.3 acres with 12,400 solar panels.

BP (founded in 1909) coined “Beyond Petroleum” during the time Lord Browne was CEO. An effort was made to green the oil giant at least from the marketing perspective. BP has been involved in solar power since 1973. BP Solar, a subsidiary of BP, is a worldwide manufacturer and installer of photovoltaic solar cells.

Oil Rigs or Renewable

Exxon Mobil (1870) being the largest of the oil companies, has avoided getting into renewables completely. As I searched the Internet for anything that would relate to Exxon and solar, I always ran into dead ends. A search at GoDaddy to see if the domain ExxonSolar.com had been registered, the answer was “Bad Request”. Maybe I was having a bad Internet connection or it was bad to put those two words together, but that is where I ended my search.

MILWAUKEE – Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in Oak Ridge, Tenn. has signed an $89 million energy savings performance contract with Johnson Controls, Inc. to apply advanced energy conservation solutions, including a biomass gasification system, to the campus.

This project is the first signed initiative of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Transformational Energy Action Management (TEAM) Initiative, which is an action plan to dramatically transform the DOE’s energy, environmental and transportation management. TEAM aims to meet or exceed the aggressive energy efficiency goals set forth by the federal government laid out by President Bush, fundamentally transforming the way the DOE manages energy use in its facilities.

“By working with Johnson Controls, Oak Ridge National Laboratory will achieve its long-term energy reduction goals far earlier than expected while saving millions of taxpayer dollars,” said ORNL Director Thom Mason. “We are dedicated to alternative energy sources. Being able to tap renewable energy for our facility is a great way to see our purpose realized.”

As the project’s cornerstone, a wood gasification biomass system will take the place of the existing natural gas steam plant and steam distribution system. By using woody biomass from the region as the main energy source for the facilities, ORNL will reduce fossil fuel consumption by 80 percent. Furthermore, the biomass plant significantly reduces greenhouse gas emissions equal to planting 32 million trees.

Overall, ORNL will benefit from an innovative suite of energy efficiency solutions including the installation of a “super boiler,” advanced electric metering, energy efficient lighting, water conservation measures, compressed air cooling, comprehensive HVAC improvements and a building management system to ensure the mission critical standards are maintained.

By eliminating more than 1.5 miles of steam piping and using enhanced technology, the “super boiler” will be up to 94 percent efficient. This is a significant improvement when compared to traditional boilers which operate 50 to 60 percent efficiently. The water conservation measures will also reduce water usage by more than 115 million gallons annually, resulting in a long-term reduction of 16 percent. As a whole, the entire project will reduce energy intensity in the labs and office buildings by 30 percent, meeting ORNL’s long-term energy reduction goal and significantly contributing to the goals of the Team initiative.

“One year ago, Secretary Bodman challenged the entire U.S. Department of Energy to meet or exceed the President’s goals for increasing energy efficiency, decreasing greenhouse gas emissions, and increasing the use of renewable energy in the Federal Government,” DOE Deputy Assistant Secretary David Rodgers said. “I’m proud to announce DOE is delivering with alternative financing methods that reduce the need for federal spending.”

It is estimated that the biomass gasification system, “super boiler” and energy efficiency improvements will generate $8 million annually in energy and operational savings. As a result, ORNL expects to save more than $144 million over the 18 year term of the contract.

“This project is a great example of what can happen when strong leadership combines with innovative solutions,” said Iain Campbell, vice president/general manager, North America Service and Global Workplace Solutions, Johnson Controls. “Together, Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Johnson Controls have developed a long-term plan for success.”

Hundreds of projects across North America, including the ORNL project, are financed through a performance guarantee with Johnson Controls. Performance guarantees are a feature of performance-based contracting, which allows a customer to make system improvements that are self-funding via cost savings. Under such a contract, the cost of facility and infrastructure upgrades is paid for over a specified number of years by the energy, water and operational cost savings the project generates. Johnson Controls guarantees all or a portion of these savings under the terms of the contract, which range in length from three to 25 years, depending on the customer’s preference.

No definitive date has been set for breaking ground on the project; however, completion is scheduled for sometime 2011.

CleanTech is excited to begin this testing and about the potential impact of our technologies for the reduction of garbage being disposed of in landfills worldwide. It is estimated that Americans produce 4.4 pounds of waste per day, or 229 million tons of trash annually nationwide. This waste represents a virtually endless source of cellulosic feedstock for the production of biofuels that potentially will be available to CleanTech at almost no cost, and in some locations at a profit.

The waste disposal crisis in this Country, coupled with the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 which dictates that production of ethanol in the United States reach 36 billion gallons per year by the year 2022, of which 20 billion gallons per year is required to be produced from feedstock sources other than corn, positions CleanTech Biofuels to be a leader in the cellulosic ethanol industry.

CleanTech Biofuels, Inc.

CleanTech Biofuels, Inc. is a development stage company that is developing cutting edge waste to clean fuel technologies. We have licensed and are developing our core patented technologies which, when combined, can be used to convert the cellulosic material in municipal solid waste, green waste, and other cellulosic waste materials into fermentable sugars for the production of ethanol.

Our unique technology package positions us to be the industry leader in using municipal solid waste (MSW) as the primary feedstock for energy production. Municipal biorefineries developed using our technology have the potential to:

* Reduce the costs of transporting waste long distances for disposal.
* Dramatically reduce pollution released into the environment by the disposal of municipal solid waste.
* Reduce the amount of material going into landfills by as much as eighty five percent.
* Increase the amount of recyclable materials that can be recovered from municipal solid waste.
* Generate biofuels and other usable energy products at competitive prices.

We believe that our combined technologies will enable the production of ethanol from cellulosic waste streams at a lower cost than from grain or other agricultural feedstocks. Our combined technologies will avoid the immense consumption of water and farmland that plague grain ethanol producers, with the added benefit of recycling garbage and reducing the amount of waste disposed of in landfills by as much as ninety percent.

By focusing on cellulosic biomass produced from curbside garbage where an existing collection and disposal infrastructure has existed for many years, our business model presents substantial economic advantages relative to other models dependant on agriculturally derived feedstocks or wood waste for the production of cellulosic ethanol.

For more information, please email CleanTech Biofuels at info@cleantechbiofuels.net

www.cleantechbiofuels.net

Note: Except for the historical information contained herein, this news release contains forward-looking statements that involve substantial risks and uncertainties. Among the factors that could cause actual results or timelines to differ materially are risks associated with research and clinical development, regulatory approvals, supply capabilities and reliance on third-party manufacturers, product commercialization, competition, litigation, and the other risk factors listed from time to time in reports filed by CleanTech Biofuels, Inc. with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Any forward-looking statements contained in this news release represent judgments of the management of CleanTech Biofuels, Inc. as of the date of this release.

PLEASANTON, Calif. – Safeway Inc., one of the largest retail users of renewable energy, today unveiled its newest solar-powered grocery stores in Northern California to kick off a week of Earth Day activities and programs focused on the company’s commitment to the environment and helping consumers pursue greener, more sustainable lives. At the same time, the company released two reports chronicling extensive sustainability efforts and community partnerships.

State and local officials joined Safeway representatives on a tour of the Placerville store’s rooftop solar panel installation. It is one of 23 stores in California targeted for renewable solar energy. The Safeway store in Fairfield is also unveiling its new solar power system, which harnesses energy from the sun and decreases the store’s reliance on traditional greenhouse gas (GHG)-emitting fossil fuel energy.

“With the addition of solar energy to our GHG reduction tool kit, Safeway is taking a leadership role in the retail sector in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and focusing on operating a greener, more ecologically focused company,” said Joe Pettus, Senior Vice President of Fuel and Energy. “Throughout our vast operations, we are taking a closer look at how we impact the environment, identifying areas for improvement and acting on them.”

Solar equipment at the Placerville and Fairfield stores provides about 20 percent of the stores’ average annual power usage and up to 48 percent of peak power usage. By using solar energy at the two stores and the company’s flagship solar store in Dublin, Calif., Safeway is removing 1.6 million pounds of carbon dioxide from the air, the equivalent of taking 144 vehicles off the road annually. The entire 23-store solar program will remove 12.6 million pounds of carbon dioxide from the air, the equivalent of taking 1,045 cars off the road annually.

Safeway is also helping consumers live greener lives by highlighting and discounting earth-friendly products in a free “Because We Care About the Environment” booklet being distributed in stores. Each featured product is manufactured, packaged or grown with a focus on sustainability. The booklet features “10 Simple and Easy Eco Tips,” to becoming a more conscious consumer. The tips include:

* Installing compact fluorescent light bulbs
* Turning off the faucet while brushing your teeth
* Using econ-friendly cleaning products
* Turning the thermostat down during the winter

Also in stores, each customer who spends $50 receives a reusable Safeway or O Organics shopping bag to encourage reuse and decrease the number of plastic and paper bags in landfills.

Focus on Green

Along with the solar store conversion and in-store consumer campaign, Safeway this week releases two reports showing the company’s commitment to its communities and the environment. The annual “Investing in our Environment” Environmental Status Report chronicles all sustainability efforts, including a broad recycling program in which the company recycled more than one million pounds of materials in 2007, equivalent to saving 8.5 million trees. The “Corporate Social Responsibility Report” details Safeway’s extensive business ethics, philanthropy, food safety, diversity and corporate governance policies. Both documents are available online at www.Safeway.com. Click “Investor Relations” and “Corporate Social Responsibility.”

Earth Day activities are just part of Safeway’s overall environmental focus and company goal to operate a cleaner, more sustainable business. Safeway’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Initiative makes it one of the largest retail users of renewable energy, utilizing solar, wind power and biodiesel fuel throughout its operations. In January Safeway became one of the first major retailers in the United States to convert its entire fleet of more than 1,000 trucks to cleaner-burning biodiesel fuel. The decision by Safeway will help reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 75 million pounds annually, the equivalent of taking nearly 7,500 passenger vehicles off the road each year.

Safeway is also one of the largest retail purchasers of wind energy, using 57 million kilowatt hours of wind energy, enough to power all 303 Safeway retail fuel stations, all stores in San Francisco, California and Boulder, Colorado, as well as all of the company headquarters and all corporate offices in Northern California.

Committed to leading by example, Safeway was the first major retailer to join the Chicago Climate Exchange, the world’s first and North America’s only legally binding GHG allowance trading system, and the California Climate Action Registry, which commits the company to reduce its carbon footprint by 6 percent from year 2000 levels. The California Climate Action Registry is the state’s only official registry for greenhouse gas emissions reduction projects and will have an active role in California’s implementation of AB-32, the States’ Global Warming Solutions Act.

In daily operations, Safeway has implemented unique energy-saving strategies throughout its manufacturing, distribution and grocery stores by installing new energy-efficient technologies, introducing new maintenance procedures and implementing new sustainable design and construction practices. New lighting, refrigeration, heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and building control systems are evaluated with sustainability in mind. These efforts, coupled with an employee education program, have resulted in lower energy usage and a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.

Additional information about the company’s environmental programs can be found at www.Safeway.com. Click on “About Us” and “Going Green.”

EULESS, Texas – Direct Fuels, the largest independent regional fuel distributor and specialty refiner in North Texas, has opened a biodiesel production facility at its refinery in Euless, Texas. This makes the company one of two producers of biodiesel in North Texas, yet the only one located at a fuel terminal so biodiesel can be blended directly into petroleum diesel, as per customer need.

Direct Fuels has implemented a production technology that allows significant flexibility in terms of the choice of feedstock used to produce the biodiesel. Initially, the company will utilize a blend of different animal fats, but that will change depending upon market conditions. The Direct Fuels facility is designed with a sophisticated blending system at its truck loading rack so that customers can request any blend that meets their needs – whether it is pure biodiesel (referred to as B100), a five percent blend of biodiesel (referred to as B5), or something in between. Production started last month, and the Direct Fuels facility has the capacity to produce more than 10 million gallons of biodiesel per year.

This facility follows Direct Fuels’ January opening of an 11-acre ethanol distribution complex in Euless, and helps solidify the company’s position as a “green” energy company serving the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

“The opening of our biodiesel facility is very timely, as petroleum-based diesel prices soar to record highs,” said Warren Bonham, president of Direct Fuels. “The plant is centrally located in the DFW Metroplex, and offers diesel retailers and distributors easy and convenient access to both alternative fuels, as well as petroleum fuels. With our fully operational biodiesel and ethanol operations, combined with our existing transmix operations, we expect more than 40 percent of our 2008 revenue to be generated from renewable and recycled fuel.”

Direct Fuels has constructed a dedicated in-house laboratory facility as part of the biodiesel operation. According to Bonham, the company is committed to producing a very high quality product and the in-house laboratory allows real-time testing to ensure that all biodiesel produced will meet the appropriate product specification.

Direct Fuels has also started the process of obtaining BQ-9000 accreditation from the National Biodiesel Accreditation Program, which means they are undergoing a rigorous assessment of their biodiesel facilities to make sure they meet the highest quality production, storage, manufacturing, shipping and distribution practices. The company expects to complete the process by the end of the year.

According to the National Biodiesel Board, biodiesel provides the best greenhouse gas mitigation strategy for today’s medium and heavy duty vehicles. A 1998 biodiesel lifecycle study, jointly sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, concluded biodiesel reduces net carbon dioxide emissions by 78 percent compared to petroleum diesel. The fuel also has the highest “energy balance” of any transportation fuel, meaning for every unit of energy it takes to make biodiesel, 3.5 units of energy are gained.

In addition to its biodiesel and ethanol facilities, Direct Fuels also operates a fuel-processing plant in Euless that refines transportation mixture, or transmix, back into various types and grades of usable fuel – similar to fuel recycling. More information on Direct Fuels can be found at www.dfuels.com

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you all. Thank you for the warm welcome. Thanks for coming. It’s my honor to be here. I’m proud to address the Washington International Renewable Energy Conference. (Applause.) Thankfully, you only left it for five words. (Laughter.) I appreciate your commitment to renewable energy. I probably didn’t help today when I rode over in a 20-car motorcade. (Laughter.)

I appreciate the fact that — I hope you understand that you’re pioneers on the frontiers of change; that I fully suspect that this conference will seem unbelievably outdated within a decade; that people will marvel about how far technology has helped change our habits and change the world. And I hope you take great pride in being a part of this constructive change. And so thanks for coming to America. We welcome you here.

To my fellow citizens, thanks for being entrepreneurs and forward thinkers. To members of my administration, like Sam Bodman who just introduced me, or Ed Schafer, the head of the Agriculture Department, or Steve Johnson, EPA — thank you all for serving our country. Thanks for your kind words, Sam. I appreciate all the others who are here from my administration.

Mike Eckhart is the President of the American Council on Renewable Energy — he and I went to Harvard together. I don’t know if he has had to spend time overcoming that, but I certainly have — (laughter) — particularly in Texas politics. But it’s good to be with my friend, Mike. I can assure you that when we were at Harvard Business School together he never envisioned that we would be in our respective positions, like we are today. As a matter of fact, I know in 1975 he never even thought about the word “renewable fuel,” much less “President George W. Bush.” (Laughter.)

I welcome the ambassadors who are here. I welcome — listen, let me start first by telling you that America has got to change its habits. We’ve got to get off oil. And the reason why is, first, oil is — dependency on oil presents a real challenge to our economy. As economies grow — and we want all our economies to grow; we want people to be prosperous, we want people who are living in poverty to be able to grow out of poverty. We want there to be general prosperity, but as economies grow, until we change our habits, there is going to be more dependency on oil.

My job, as the President of the country, is to put pro-growth policies in place. But we’re dependent upon oil, and so as our economy grows, it’s going to create more demand for oil — same with China, same with India, same with other growing countries. It should be obvious to you all that the demand is outstripping supply, which causes prices to go up. And it’s making it harder here in America for working families to save, and for farmers to be prosperous, and for small businesses to grow.

The dependency upon oil also puts us at the mercy of terrorists. If there’s tight supply and demand, all it requires is one terrorist disruption of oil and that price goes even higher. It’s in our interests to end our dependency on oil because it — that dependency presents a challenge to our national security. In 1985, 20 percent of America’s oil came from abroad. Today that number is nearly 60 percent.

Now, all the countries we import from are friendly, stable countries; but some countries we get oil from don’t particularly like us. They don’t like the form of government that we embrace. They don’t believe in the same freedoms we believe in, and that’s a problem from a national security perspective, for the United States and any other nation that values its economic sovereignty and national sovereignty.

And finally, our dependence on fossil fuels like oil presents a challenge to our environment. When we burn fossil fuels we release greenhouse gases. The concentration of greenhouse gases has increased substantially. We recognize all three of these challenges, and we’re doing something about it.

I’ve come today to tell you that America is the kind of country that when they see a problem, we address it head-on. I’ve set a great goal for our country, and that is to reduce our dependence on oil by investing in technologies that will produce abundant supplies of clean and renewable energy, and at the same time show the world that we’re good stewards of the environment.

Now, look, I understand stereotypes are hard to defeat. People get an image planted in their head, and sometimes it causes them not to listen to the facts. But America is in the lead when it comes to energy independence; we’re in the lead when it comes to new technologies; we’re in the lead when it comes to global climate change — and we’ll stay that way. (Applause.)

Overall, over the past seven years — or since I’ve been the President, the federal government spent more than $12 billion to research, develop and promote alternative energy sources. Our private sector is investing a lot of money — and I fully understand there needs to be consistent policy out of the U.S. government that has thus far provided incentives to invest. What the government doesn’t need to do is send mixed signals. I understand private capital, understand how it flows. And so when people look at the United States to determine whether we’re committed to new technologies that will change how we live, they not only need to look at the federal investment, but they’ve got to understand there’s a lot of smart money heading into the private sector to help develop these new technologies.

Our strategy is twofold: One, we’re going to change the way we drive our cars; and two, we’ll change the way we power our businesses and homes. In other words, the two most vulnerable areas to economic disruption happens to be automobile use and electric power. The two biggest opportunities to help change the environment is through how we drive our cars and how we power our country. So first let me talk about automobiles.

I laid out a goal for the United States to reduce gasoline consumption by 20 percent over the next 10 years — that’s called 20-10 [sic]. By the way, that’s in the face of a growing economy — to reduce gasoline usage by 20 percent over 10 years.

And we’ll work with Congress. For those of you who watch the American legislative process, you think it’s probably impossible for the American President to work with Congress these days. Well, it’s not true. I was able to sign a good piece of legislation called the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. This legislation specifies a national mandatory fuel economy standard of 35 miles per gallon by 2020, which will save billions of gallons of gasoline.

Secondly, the legislation requires fuel producers to supply at least 36 billion gallons of renewable fuel in the year 2022. In other words, these just aren’t goals, these are mandatory requirements. I’m confident the United States can meet those goals, and I know we must, for the sake of economic security, national security, and for the sake of being good stewards of the environment.

Biodiesel is the most promising of these fuels. Biodiesel refineries can produce fuel from soybeans, and vegetable oils, and recycled cooking grease, from waste materials. All you out there with waste, you may be in business before you know it as this new technology kicks in. Most Americans — or, more Americans are beginning to realize the benefits of biodiesel every year.

Last year, we produced 450 million gallons of biodiesel. That’s up 80 percent from 2006. Today there are more than 650 biodiesel fueling stations in America. There are hundreds of fleet operators that use biodiesel to fuel their trucks, and that’s just the beginning of what is going to be a substantial change in our driving habits.

And then there’s ethanol. In the 2000 campaign I strongly supported ethanol. In 2008 it’s amazing to think about how far our country has come since the year 2000. Ethanol production has quadrupled from 1.6 billion gallons in 2000 to a little over 6.4 billion gallons in 2007.

And the vast majority of that ethanol is coming from corn, and that’s good. That’s good if you’re a corn-grower. And it’s good if you’re worried about national security. I’d rather have our corn farmers growing energy than relying upon some nation overseas that may not like us. That’s how I view it. (Applause.)

In 2005 the United States became the world’s leading ethanol producer. Last year we accounted for nearly half of the worldwide ethanol production. I don’t know if our fellow citizens understand that, but there is a substantial change taking place, primarily in the Midwest of our country.

Corn ethanol holds a lot of promise, but there’s a lot of challenges. If you’re a hog-raiser in the United States, you’re beginning to worry about the cost of corn to feed your animals. I’m beginning to hear complaints from our cattlemen about the high price of corn. The high price of corn is beginning to affect the price of food.

And so we got to do something about it, and the best thing to do is not to retreat from our commitment to alternative fuels, but to spend research and development money on alternatives to ethanol made from other materials — for example, cellulosic ethanol holds a lot of promise. I’m sure there are people in the industry here that will tell you how far the industry has come in a very quick period of time.

I look forward to the day when Texas ranchers can grow switchgrass on their country, and then have that switchgrass be converted to fuel. I look forward to the day when people in the parts of our country that have got a lot of forests are able to convert wood chips into fuel. And those days are coming. (Applause.)

The Department of Energy had dedicated nearly $1 billion to develop technologies that can make cellulosic ethanol cost competitive. And the interesting thing that’s happened in a relatively quick period of time is that the projected cost of cellulosic ethanol has dropped by more than 60 percent. In other words, new technologies are coming. The job of the federal government is to expedite their arrival.

Expanding use in ethanol and biodiesel requires getting more cars on the road that use these alternative fuels. We expect the private sector to respond. Our consumers are going to demand flex-fuel vehicles when they find out that these new technologies are available. As a matter of fact, there’s 5 million flex-fuel vehicles on our roads now. I just saw some new ones here. Amazing joint venture with Mack and Volvo on these giant trucks that are using biodiesel to power them. I said, can you make it more than a couple of miles? The man said, not only we can make it more than a couple of miles, we can accelerate out of danger if we need to.

Technology is changing. Five years ago those trucks would not have been available for people at this exhibit to look at. Today they’re on the road. As a matter of fact, the United States Air Force is using these kinds of trucks. Things are changing.

Another way to reduce our dependence on oil is promote hybrid vehicles. We’re providing tax incentives to people to buy these fuel-efficient vehicles. In other words, the government is saying if you buy one, we’ll give you a little incentive to do so. I’ve supported those policies. I think it makes sense to create a consumerism for these kinds of vehicles.

When I was first elected, there were virtually no hybrids on the roads. Today there is nearly a million. We’re also investing in plug-in hybrids. We want our city people driving not on gasoline but on electricity. And the goal, the short-term goal, is to have vehicles that are capable of driving the first 40 miles on electricity — vehicles that don’t look like a golf cart, by the way; vehicles that meet consumer demand. And that day is coming. The battery technologies are amazing, and the United States is investing millions of dollars to hasten the day. The battery technology is more efficient and competitive.

This administration is a strong supporter of hydrogen. We spent about $1.2 billion in research and development to bring vehicles running on hydrogen to the market. A lot of people don’t even know what I’m talking about when I’m talking about hydrogen. But the waste product of a hydrogen-powered vehicle is pure and clean water.

This is an amazing opportunity for us. Now, this will be a long-term opportunity, compared to ethanol and biodiesel and plug-in hybrids, but it makes sense to invest now and work on the technology so that when it becomes cost-competitive, it’s available. We’re also working for the day when, you know, these new fuels power not only automobiles and trucks but airplanes.

In December, the United States Air Force flew a C-17 — that’s a huge airplane — from Washington state to New Jersey. For those of you who don’t live in America, that is a long way. (Laughter.) And they did so on a blend of regular and synthetic fuels. I was interested to see that Virgin Atlantic flew a 747 from London’s Heathrow Airport to Amsterdam, fueled partly by coconuts and Brazilian babassu nuts. I’ve never seen a babassu nut, but it’s amazing that it helped power an airplane the size of a 747. (Applause.)

What I’ve just described to you is the beginning of a new era. And — oh, it’s probably hard to equate it to the Model The, but maybe we’re not that far off. And the United States believes it’s in our interests to promote this new era.

Secondly, we’ve got to reduce our dependence on oil and fossil fuels, and replace them with alternative energy sources to power our homes and our work places. Look, you can’t have a vibrant economy unless you’ve got reliable electricity. For those of you in the developing world, you know what I’m talking about. As a matter of fact, the issue is not reliable electricity; the issue is getting electricity to people in the first place. Well, here in the United States, we’ve overcome those issues. And now we’ve got to make sure that we have enough of it that enables us to continue to grow.

And the truth of the matter is, you’ve got to be — have a growing economy to be able to afford these technologies in the first place. So here are some ways that we’re dealing with the issue of electricity. One, I strongly believe the United States must promote nuclear power here in the United States. Nuclear power — (applause) — if you’re interested in economic growth and environmental stewardship, there’s no better way to achieve both of them than through the promotion of nuclear power. Nuclear power is limitless. It’s one existing source that generates a massive amount of electricity without causing air pollution or any greenhouse gases.

And yet the United States — we haven’t built any nuclear power plants in a long time. We have a promising technology available and yet we’re stuck — until recently. All of our citizens probably don’t understand, but France, our ally and friend, gets nearly 80 percent of its power from nuclear power. Isn’t that an amazing statistic? It’s time for America to change.

My administration is working to eliminate the barriers to development of nuclear power plants. Last year we invested more than $300 million in nuclear energy technologies. We want our people to understand that this generation of nuclear power plants is safe. We want people to feel comfortable about the expansion of nuclear power.

There’s regulatory uncertainty when it comes to permitting plants in the United States. You can’t expect somebody to invest a lot of money and have the regulatory process at the very end stop that capital from being deployed. It makes no sense. Just like tax policy has to be certain, so does regulatory policy have to create a sense of certainty in order to get people to invest.

So in the energy bill I signed in 2005, we began to address that uncertainty with federal risk insurance for those who build nuclear power plants. This insurance protects the builders of the first six new plants against lawsuits — we got a lot of them in America, by the way; too many lawsuits, in my judgment — against bureaucratic obstacles and against delays beyond the — that would cause people to hesitate to participate in this program.

We’ve also launched a program called Nuclear Power 2010. Sam Bodman is in charge of all these. It’s a partnership between our industry and the U.S. government. Since we’ve started these programs, we’ve received six applications to build and operate new nuclear power plants in the United States. The paradigm is beginning to shift. And we anticipate that another 13 applications will be submitted this year.

Many of the construction projects will be supported by $18.5 billion in loan guarantees provided by the government. By the way, that’s part of a loan-guarantee projects that we got out of Congress — $18 billion for the nukes, $10 billion for renewable energy expansions in the United States. (Applause.) This will enable our plant owners — guys that are applying for loans — (laughter) — the whole purpose is, is we want to expand our nuclear power industry. And we’re taking specific actions to do it.

You know, there’s a lot of politicians who just talk. I hope when history is written of this administration, we not only talked, we actually did positive things and constructive things.

We’re also working with our friends overseas for the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership. I believe developing nations ought to be encouraged to use nuclear power. I believe it’s in our interests, I believe it will help take pressure off the price of oil, and I know it’s going to help protect the environment. And so we’re working with other nations, like Japan and France and Great Britain and Russia and China, to form this energy partnership, the purpose of which is to help developing nations secure cost-effective and proliferation-resistant nuclear power, and at the same time to conduct joint research on how to deal with the nuclear waste issue, through positive, productive reprocessing.

And so the United States of America has got a strategy to help change our electricity mix here at home. And part of that strategy is on nuclear power. Another part of that strategy is based upon wind power. Now, since 2001, America has increased wind energy production by more than 300 percent. This is a new industry for us, and it’s beginning to grow. More than 20 percent of new electrical generating capacity added in America came from wind last year. I met some of the wind boys. They’re excited about the opportunities in the U.S. market, and they should be, because this new technology is taking hold. Last year, America installed more wind power capacity than any other country in the world.

I don’t know if you know this or not: When I was the governor of Texas, I signed a electric deregulation bill that encouraged and mandated the use of renewable energy. Today, Texas produces more wind energy than any other state in the Union. If an oil state can produce wind energy, other states in America can produce wind energy. (Applause.) I remember when I signed the bill, I said, there’s a new day coming for wind. And they said, well, you’re leaving the state, and a lot of hot air is going with it. (Laughter.)

In addition to wind power, we have spent, since I’ve been the President, a billion dollars on harnessing the power of the sun. The solar technology folks who are here will tell you there’s some amazing changes have taken place in a quick period of time. I mean, I really see a day in which each house can be a little electric generator of their own, and feeding back excess power into the grid through the use of solar power. (Applause.)

I told you that we’re — and by the way, last year U.S. solar installations grew by more than 32 percent in the U.S. In other words — I hope you’re excited by these statistics; I certainly am. But these are just the beginning. Before I came over here, I really did sit around the Oval Office trying to figure out what a President will be saying 10 years from now. If you really think about what would have been said in 2000 compared to today, imagine what’s going to be said 10 years from now compared to today.

I will repeat something I’ve been saying a lot here in America: The United States is serious about confronting climate change, and the strategies I just laid out for you are an integral part of dealing with climate change. Should there be an international agreement? Yes, there should be, and we support it. (Applause.) But I would remind you, an agreement will be effective — and that’s what we want, we want an effective agreement. I think we ought to be results oriented people, not process people. It’s one thing to have a nice conference, but out of those conferences we should expect results. We want a strategy that works, not sounds good.

And so in order for there to be effective international agreements, it must include — these agreements must include commitments, solid commitments, by every major economy, and no country should get a free ride. (Applause.)

And meeting this goal is going to take some tough choices. I’ve got a good man named Dan Price on my staff who is leading the U.S. efforts on the major economies conferences that we’re hosting. That’s, by the way, running parallel to the U.N. process. This is not in lieu of the U.N. process; it is to enable the U.N. process to become effective.

The first step is to get the major economies to agree to a goal. If you want commitment, if you want all folks at the table, the first step has got to be to say, we’ve got a problem, and here’s a goal. I believe in setting clear goals, goals that are easy to understand.

And then it’s up to us, each nation, to develop a strategy to help meet those goals. We’ve got different economies. We’ve got different electricity mixes. What I’ve just described to you is a strategy to deal with energy dependence, as well as climate change. It will be different from country to country. We’ve got a different energy mix than a lot of nations do.

And we expect countries that sign up to that goal to develop a strategy to meet that goal. And the United States will do the same thing. We’re not going to say, okay, you set the goal and you meet it, but we’re not going to join. Once we join, we join. And so you’re watching a process unfold to make sure that we have an effective international agreement.

And I fully understand — and by the way, I want to repeat what I said before: An effective agreement is one that recognizes that economies got to grow in order to be able to afford investment in the first place; that you must have economic wealth in order to be able to afford the research and development.

This is an issue that requires substantial commitments of money, and it’s hard to commit money if you don’t have any. And it’s hard to commit money if your economies are hurting. So we ought to make sure we grow our economies and at the same time have the money necessary to invest. And I fully understand some nations are incapable of affording these new technologies.

And here’s what we intend to do about it: There ought to be an international fund, a clean technology fund from the wealthy nations to help poorer nations clean up their environments. (Applause.) I call on our Congress to commit $2 billion to the fund. And in my travels here in my last year of the presidency, I’m going to call on other wealthy nations to contribute to this fund.

I want any agreement to be effective. I don’t want us just to feel good. I want to be able to say, when it’s all said and done, we’ve done something that’s actually going to solve the problem. And if people are truly interested in solving the problem, if you’re interested in expanding alternative energy, then we need to come together to eliminate tariffs and other trade barriers to enable clean technologies to move duty-free around the world. (Applause.)

There’s too many — too many impediments. There’s too much protectionism. I mean, if you’re truly interested in solving global climate change, then you should insist to your leaders to join the United States and other countries to make it easier to move these products, to eliminate all barriers to trade and technologies that will enable us to be better stewards of the environment.

So here’s the strategy to deal with climate change and energy dependence. The United States not only is pursuing this strategy on an international basis, we also have got bilateral partnerships — with Brazil, for example, we signed a biofuels compact. We signed agreements with China to expand cooperation on biomass and to improve energy efficiencies for vehicles and industrial production. We’re working with Sweden. The Deputy Prime Minister is here, and I’m honored you are here, on a very constructive relationship. There’s a U.S. company working with United Kingdom’s Wave Hub to harness the power of the seas.

This is an ambitious vision I’ve just described to you. And obviously you support something ambitious being done, otherwise you wouldn’t be here at this conference. I hope you’re excited when you see the exhibits. Just keep in mind how far we have come in a short period of time, and be hopeful about how far we will go in a short period of time.

There was an article in The New York Sun not long after Alexander Bell’s famous phone call; his first phone call to a fellow named Thomas Watson. I would like to read to you from that article: “It is to be doubted if the telephone will be used otherwise than locally. It’s too sensitive for circuits exceeding a few miles in length.” Imagine if that author of that article were alive today. I suspect he would have been sorry he used the words “it should be doubted.” After all, he’d see a world where crystal-clear telephone calls are placed over circuits that stretch not miles but across the globe. He would see a wireless infrastructure developing around the world.

Same thing is going to happen when it comes to energy. Oh, I know there’s doubters, but I’m confident that when we look back at this period of time, they will say, how could you have doubted the capacity of mankind to develop the technologies necessary to deal with the real problems of the 21st century?

Leave with one thing in mind: The United States is committed, and we’re firm in our commitments, to deal with energy problems and to deal with global climate change. And it’s been my honor to be with you today.

May God bless you. (Applause.)

SAN RAMON, Calif. & FEDERAL WAY, Wash.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) and Weyerhaeuser Company (NYSE:WY) today announced the creation of a 50-50 joint venture company focused on developing the next generation of renewable transportation fuels from nonfood sources.

The joint venture, Catchlight Energy LLC, will research and develop technology for converting cellulose-based biomass into economical, low-carbon biofuels. The formation of Catchlight Energy is the first milestone of a biofuels alliance announced by Chevron and Weyerhaeuser in April 2007 and reflects the companies’ shared view that nonfood biofuels will play an important role in diversifying the nation’s energy supply.

“At Weyerhaeuser, we believe our timberlands hold solutions to important problems for people and the planet,” said Miles Drake, senior vice president, Research and Development and chief technology officer for Weyerhaeuser. “Catchlight Energy represents an imaginative approach to releasing this potential as we work to develop a sustainable solution to the world’s energy needs.”

“Catchlight Energy brings together two leaders in their industries and leverages their strengths — from feedstocks to fuel manufacturing to marketing — to create a sustainable, economic, nonfood biofuels business at commercial scale,” said Mike Wirth, executive vice president, Global Downstream for Chevron.

Michael Burnside of Chevron has been appointed chief executive officer of Catchlight. During his 33-year career with Chevron, Burnside has held a variety of positions in manufacturing, planning and analysis and finance, and has been involved with a number of joint ventures. W. Densmore Hunter of Weyerhaeuser has been named Catchlight’s chief technology officer. Since joining Weyerhaeuser in 1980, Hunter has held key research, technology and manufacturing positions and currently leads the company’s biofuels and bioproducts research and development efforts.

Both Chevron and Weyerhaeuser will contribute resources — including funding, background technology and employees — to Catchlight Energy. Catchlight’s initial focus will be on developing and demonstrating novel technologies for converting cellulose and lignin from a variety of sources into biofuels.

Chevron and Weyerhaeuser already have separate research partnerships under way with universities, national laboratories and technology-based companies to advance the development of nonfood biofuels.

About Chevron

Chevron Corporation is one of the world’s leading integrated energy companies with subsidiaries that conduct business across the globe. The company’s success is driven by the ingenuity and commitment of approximately 59,000 employees who operate across the energy spectrum. Chevron explores for, produces and transports crude oil and natural gas; refines, markets and distributes transportation fuels and other energy products and services; manufactures and sells petrochemical products; generates power and produces geothermal energy; and develops and commercializes the energy resources of the future, including biofuels and other renewables. Chevron is based in San Ramon, Calif. More information about Chevron is available at www.chevron.com.

About Weyerhaeuser

Weyerhaeuser Company, one of the world’s largest integrated forest products companies, was incorporated in 1900. In 2007, sales were $16.3 billion. It has offices or operations in 13 countries, with customers worldwide. Weyerhaeuser is principally engaged in the growing and harvesting of timber; the manufacture, distribution and sale of forest products; and real estate construction, development and related activities. Additional information about Weyerhaeuser’s businesses, products and practices is available at http://www.weyerhaeuser.com.

San Luis Obispo, CA—REC Solar, a rapidly growing provider of residential and commercial solar electric systems, and Mitsubishi Electric have announced the completion of Hawaii’s two largest solar installations for the Costco Wholesale locations in Kauai and Kona. The two systems, which are 680 kilowatts (DC) each, hold the distinction of being the biggest solar arrays in the state of Hawaii to date. Collectively, these systems will generate enough electricity to power 250 homes.

Inspired by generous government rebates and tax incentives other businesses in Hawaii have followed Costco’s lead and are now installing solar electric systems as well. Hawaii Governor Linda Lingle recently pledged her commitment to the solar industry by announcing plans to install large scale solar electric systems on a number of government buildings.

“The booming solar industry has resulted in an unprecedented surge of job growth in Hawaii. The state’s strategic solar incentive program is providing Hawaii with a unique opportunity to expand their economy beyond agriculture and tourism,” said Angiolo Laviziano, CEO and President of REC Solar.

The completion of these installations marks the beginning of REC Solar’s large scale commercial projects for Costco. REC Solar has also recently completed solar electric systems at the Costco locations in Goleta and San Luis Obispo, California.

According to Drew Bradley, Commercial Sales Consultant for REC Solar’s Hawaii division: “It’s great working with a forward-thinking company like Costco. They are continually making smart environmental and business decisions. Each solar electric system guarantees their store managers low priced electricity for at least the next 25 years. That’s a legacy that every CFO can appreciate!”

Mitsubishi solar panels were used in all four installations because of their performance and reliability. “These solar electric systems will result in huge savings for Costco and we are honored to partner with two such innovative and respected companies,” added Gina Heng, Director of Sales & Marketing for Mitsubishi Electric & Electronics USA’s Photovoltaic Division.

About REC Solar, Inc.
REC Solar, Inc. is an industry-leading solar power provider specializing in grid-tied residential and commercial installations. With a local presence in all major solar markets in the USA and with millions of watts installed, REC Solar is committed to lowering the cost of solar power through efficient processes, innovative products, and outstanding customer service. REC Solar is among the nation’s largest solar integrators and currently has offices throughout 6 states (AZ, CA, CO, HI, OR and NJ). REC Solar is continuing its rapid expansion into other states and has the capability to implement solar installations in every location as incentives become available. For additional information on REC Solar visit www.recsolar.com or call 1-888-OK-SOLAR (888-657-6527).

About Mitsubishi Electric & Electronics USA’s Photovoltaic Division
Mitsubishi Electric is one of the world’s largest manufacturers and providers of solar power technology, including PV cells, modules and inverters. The company’s eco-friendly photovoltaic systems are used throughout the world to bring clean, reliable energy to residences, business, power generation plants, schools, factories and areas without access to electricity, as well as other applications such as highway and stadium lighting. In the United States, Mitsubishi Electric photovoltaic panels are marketed by Mitsubishi Electric & Electronics USA, Inc., and sold only through authorized distributors and installers. For more information visit www.mitsubishielectricsolar.com or call 714.220.2500.

SAN ANTONIO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Rackspace® Managed Hosting today announced that through its GreenSpace initiative and relationship with NativeEnergy, a leading national marketer of renewable energy credits and carbon offsets, the IT hosting specialist will be providing support to two new renewable energy projects through the purchasing of carbon offsets.

For 2008, Rackspace will support two new renewable projects: the Penn England Family Dairy Waste to Energy Project, which will help ramp up a manure digester on this 700 cow dairy farm that displaces onsite fossil fuel use and emissions of methane, and the Farmer Owned Distributed Small Scale Wind Project in Minnesota, which supports the sale and installation of German-designed 40 kW Aeroman wind turbines that are remanufactured and customized for Midwest conditions.

Rackspace unveiled its GreenSpace initiative in June, a program designed to reduce emissions by conserving energy and increasing employee awareness of climate change, and a key component was using NativeEnergy to offset carbon emissions produced by customer servers managed within Rackspace’s data centers. Currently, Rackspace adds hundreds of new servers a month to its US-based data centers, and Rackspace will continue to offset the carbon emissions for each new customer server brought online.

By offsetting estimated emissions from new servers for 2007, Rackspace helped support the completion of the Schrack Family Dairy Waste to Energy Project in Pennsylvania, and fulfilled their portion of the funding for the Owl Feather War Bonnet Wind Farm project that will bring wind power to the Rosebud Sioux Reservation in South Dakota.

“Rackspace has been an outstanding environmental ally by offsetting the estimated carbon emissions from all new servers,” said Tom Boucher, president and CEO, NativeEnergy. “Their support of these family farm-based renewable energy projects will help farmers reduce their long-term electricity costs, while helping stabilize the electricity grid with distributed, small-scale power generation. NativeEnergy’s clients have built 18 turbines in the last year, and with Rackspace’s help, we expect to build thirty or more in 2008.”

“What is great about our relationship with NativeEnergy is that not only are we offsetting new servers, but we are able to show existing customers how to offset their servers in an easy and affordable way,” said John Engates, chief technology officer, Rackspace Managed Hosting. “Helping to build new renewable energy projects is a step in the right direction for us, but we still believe offsetting alone is not the answer. Conservation and changing behavior are critical to a full-on approach to reducing emissions, so we are working on multiple projects in our data centers to conserve energy, and we are continually working internally to educate our employees on how to reduce their climate impact.“

For more information on the GreenSpace initiative, please visit http://www.rackspace.com/information/events/green.php.

About NativeEnergy

Native American majority-owned, NativeEnergy is a national marketer of carbon offsets and renewable energy credits (RECs), offering individuals and organizations a means to compensate for their global warming pollution, or to effectively power their homes and businesses with renewable energy. NativeEnergy’s unique business process brings upfront payment to renewable projects for their estimated future REC or offset output, enabling its customers to help directly finance the construction of new wind farms and other renewable energy projects, such as Native American and Native Alaskan wind farms, and wind turbines and methane digesters on family dairy farms. These projects reduce our reliance on fossil fuels to meet the nation’s electricity needs, and reduce emissions on the farms. NativeEnergy also offers Green-e certified RECs from operating wind farms and third party-verified offsets from operating CO2 mitigation projects.

Online at: www.nativeenergy.com.

About Rackspace Managed Hosting

A recognized leader in the global managed hosting market, Rackspace Managed Hosting delivers enterprise-level managed services to businesses of all sizes. Serving more than 15,000 customers in eight data centers worldwide, Rackspace integrates the industry’s best technologies for each customer need and delivers it as a service via the company’s award-winning Fanatical Support®. Through trusted relationships, Rackspace serves as an extension of its customers’ IT departments, enabling them to focus on their core business. Since its inception in 1998, Rackspace has grown more than 50 percent a year. For more information, please visit www.rackspace.com, or call 800-961-2888.

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) today announced a new strategic initiative to develop electricity from renewable energy sources that will be cheaper than electricity produced from coal. The newly created initiative, known as Renewable Energy Cheaper Than Coal, will focus initially on advanced solar thermal power, wind power technologies, enhanced geothermal systems and other potential breakthrough technologies. Renewable Energy Cheaper Than Coal is hiring engineers and energy experts to lead its research and development work, which will begin with a significant effort on solar thermal technology, and will also investigate enhanced geothermal systems and other areas. In 2008, Google expects to spend tens of millions on research and development and related investments in renewable energy. As part of its capital planning process, the company also anticipates investing hundreds of millions of dollars in breakthrough renewable energy projects which generate positive returns.

“We have gained expertise in designing and building large-scale, energy-intensive facilities by building efficient data centers,” said Larry Page, Google Co-founder and President of Products. “We want to apply the same creativity and innovation to the challenge of generating renewable electricity at globally significant scale, and produce it cheaper than from coal.”

Page added, “There has been tremendous work already on renewable energy. Technologies have been developed that can mature into industries capable of providing electricity cheaper than coal. Solar thermal technology, for example, provides a very plausible path to providing renewable energy cheaper than coal. We are also very interested in further developing other technologies that have potential to be cost-competitive and green. We are aware of several promising technologies, and believe there are many more out there.”

Page continued, “With talented technologists, great partners and significant investments, we hope to rapidly push forward. Our goal is to produce one gigawatt of renewable energy capacity that is cheaper than coal. We are optimistic this can be done in years, not decades.” (One gigawatt can power a city the size of San Francisco.)

“If we meet this goal,” said Page, “and large-scale renewable deployments are cheaper than coal, the world will have the option to meet a substantial portion of electricity needs from renewable sources and significantly reduce carbon emissions. We expect this would be a good business for us as well.”

Coal is the primary power source for many around the world, supplying 40% of the world’s electricity. The greenhouse gases it produces are one of our greatest environmental challenges. Making electricity produced from renewable energy cheaper than coal would be a key part of reducing global greenhouse-gas emissions.

“Cheap renewable energy is not only critical for the environment but also vital for economic development in many places where there is limited affordable energy of any kind,” added Sergey Brin, Google Co-founder and President of Technology.

Strategic Investments and Grants

“Lots of groups are doing great work trying to produce inexpensive renewable energy. We want to add something that moves these efforts toward even cheaper technologies a bit more quickly. Usual investment criteria may not deliver the super low-cost, clean, renewable energy soon enough to avoid the worst effects of climate change,” said Dr. Larry Brilliant, Executive Director of Google.org, Google’s philanthropic arm. “Google.org’s hope is that by funding research on promising technologies, investing in promising new companies, and doing a lot of R&D ourselves, we may help spark a green electricity revolution that will deliver breakthrough technologies priced lower than coal.”

Working with Renewable Energy Cheaper Than Coal, Google.org will make strategic investments and grants that demonstrate a path toward producing energy at an unsubsidized cost below that of coal-fired power plants. Google will work with a variety of organizations in the renewable energy field, including companies, R&D laboratories, and universities. For example, Google.org is working with two companies that have promising scalable energy technologies:

* eSolar Inc., a Pasadena, CA-based company specializing in solar thermal power which replaces the fuel in a traditional power plant with heat produced from solar energy. eSolar’s technology has great potential to produce utility-scale power cheaper than coal. For more information, please visit http://www.google.com/corporate/green/energy/esolar.pdf.
* Makani Power Inc., an Alameda, CA-based company developing high-altitude wind energy extraction technologies aimed at harnessing the most powerful wind resources. High-altitude wind energy has the potential to satisfy a significant portion of current global electricity needs. For more information on Makani Power, please visit http://www.google.com/corporate/green/energy/makani.pdf.

Ongoing Commitments

Today’s announcement represents just the latest steps in Google’s commitment to a clean and green energy future.

Google has been working hard on energy efficiency and making its business environmentally sustainable. Last spring the company announced its intention to be carbon neutral for 2007, and is on track to meet that goal. To this end, the company has taken concrete steps to reduce its carbon footprint and accelerate improvements in green technology, including:

* Developing cutting-edge energy efficiency technology to power and cool its data centers in the U.S. and around the world.
* Generating electricity for its Mountain View campus from a 1.6 Megawatt corporate solar panel installation, one of the largest in the U.S.
* Accelerating development and adoption of plug-in vehicles through the RechargeIT initiative, including a $10 million request for investment proposals (http://www.google.org/recharge/)
* Joining with other industry leaders in 2007 to form the Climate Savers Computing Initiative, a consortium that advocates the design and use of more energy-efficient computers and servers (http://www.climatesaverscomputing.org/).
* Working on policies that encourage renewable energy development and deployment, such as a U.S. Renewable Energy Standard, through Google.org.

For more information on Google’s commitment to a clean energy future, see http://www.google.com/renewable-energy

For broadcast-standard video and other multimedia files for the announcement, see http://www.google.com/intl/en/press/index.html

For more information on recruitment for Renewable Energy Cheaper Than Coal, see http://www.google.com/jobs/energy/

WEBCAST AND CONFERENCE CALL INFORMATION

Google’s renewable energy initiative call begins today at 9:00 AM (PT) / 12:00 PM (ET). A replay of the call will be available beginning at 11:30 PM (ET) today through midnight Tuesday, December 4th, 2007 by calling 888-203-1112 in the United States or 719-457-0820 for calls from outside the United States. The required confirmation code for the replay is 2205214.